Similar Differences
by HighlanderQueen
Summary: Things go insane when a Garden Nymph wants to help her lifelong Centaur friend in the area of love.OreiusOC, OCOC
1. Mornings

Chelseypudge(Who plays Hafwen):

Hello everyone! This is a story that imadaywalker and I came up with. We were insanely bored...I hope you like it! Cause we had fun.

Mrs. Peacock (Who plays Rhoslyn):

Hehe! Well, everything HighlanderQueen said was pretty spot on! This story is going to be really fun to write and really fun to read! I hope everyone enjoys!

Disclaimer: We don't own Narnia, as much as we would love it. We just drag Oreius out to play every now and then.

We do, however, own Rhoslyn and Hafwen because they are fashioned to resemble us in Narnian terms. You can't steal our personalities! giggle

Chapter 1

Rhoslyn's POV

"In five, four, three, two, one…" I whisper. "Well, it's about time! I've been up for hours now!" I yell even though I doubt I am going to get a response from the sun.

I hop down from my tree and twirl around. Since winter is around the corner, everything has been so dull. The flowers and other plants are asleep and there is no one to play with.

I hear the birds singing and decide to join in. "Hello, Rhoslyn!" The blue bird whistles.

"Well, hello to you too! I thought you would have migrated by now," I say curiously.

"Today's the day. We will see you in the spring!" Just like that the little bird flew away.

I twirled around some more singing the tune but that got old very fast. "Ah, I am so bored!" I moan. "Hmm…I am up others should be up as well…right?" I dance down the hill all the way towards my good friend Hafwen's cottage.

Hafwen's POV

It was another beautiful day in Narnia. I sat up and stretched with a yawn. I looked about my messy, but comfortable room in my cozy cottage.

I grunt at the sunlight, "Another day I have to face. Oh joy, oh rapture."

I lift myself from the bed and pull on a robe-like tunic. I move into my kitchen and pour myself a bowl of juice.

"MORNING!" Rhoslyn, the Garden Nymph, yelled as she popped her head through the window.

"GAH!" I scream, spilling my juice down the front of my robe.

"You really shouldn't do that, Hafie. Now you have to clean it."

I growl at her and she grins, her face leaving the window.

"Oh, come now, sunshine!" She crows as she enters my house, "Today is a beautiful day! The sun is shining, the flowers are blooming…"

"Rhos, can I wake up before I have to be perky?"

She just grins at me and plops herself in the only chair in the kitchen, which I had built for her. She then becomes occupied by the flowers on the table.

I just shake my head and move back into my room to change. I wash my face and comb my hair, only to once again pull it back into a loose knot, as I always do.

I walk back out and smile as I see Rhoslyn talking to the flowers in my kitchen.

"Ready to go to work?"

She jumps and grins at me.

"Always!"

Rhoslyn's POV

"Seriously Hafie! I have been so bored lately! Work has been dead…literally!" I complain as we trudge up the hill. Hafwen snickers.

"Well, today's your last day. At least you get the winter off. Some of us still have to work."

"That's even worse! All that free time is going to drive me up the wall! AHHHH!" I let out a scream causing Hafwen to give me a look.

"You are really one for the dramatics, aren't you Rhos?" I shoot her a dirty look.

"Me, the dramatic one!" I roll my eyes, "Sure." I snap. She ignores my crankiness.

"You should visit with the other nymphs. I'm sure they can entertain you." I mulled it over for a second.

"I don't know, you know how outgoing I am…"

"That isn't an excuse."

"But all the nymphs are gone for the winter!"

"Rhos! Stop it! They aren't all gone. You know as well as I do that the water nymphs stay for the winter."

"They are so arrogant!" I whine.

"Fine then. Go and sit in your tree all day alone but don't complain about being bored!" Hafwen says sternly in her Lieutenant tone. Normally, I would have taken offense to this, but she had a point.

"You're right. I'll go see the water nymphs…" I murmur grudgingly as we approach Cair Paravel.

"See, all you have to do is open up! I am glad to see you are finally blossoming!" Hafwen laughs, getting a kick out of her joke.

Hafwen's POV

I pinch the bridge of my nose as yet another one of my recruits falls on her face. It is so easy, it's not fun anymore.

"Tell me again why you chose to join Narnia's Army?"

"To serve my nation, sir."

"Then get up, try again, and see if you can make it this time without me knocking you off your feet."

"Yes, sir."

In one swift motion, she was on the ground again.

She curses under her breath and looks up at me. The pitiful creature. Her face is all covered in mud and her hair is ragged. I sigh. I may be stern, but I'm not mean. I hold out my hand and haul her up.

"Ok. Go back in line with the others. We will try again after lunch."

She nods, "Yes, sir."

"Ladies," I say, pacing in front of them, "I don't know what you may think, but this is not a game. This is not to impress the 'boys.' We are here to serve the nation and to keep it safe. We cannot do that if we are easily taken down. I don't care how well you shoot." I say, shooting a glare at the young, feisty centaur that argued with me at the beginning of the training, "You have to be able to defend yourselves. Understood?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good. Now, who's next?"

When we stopped for lunch, Oreius came by to see our progress.

"So, Lieutenant. How are the recruits?"

"Very green, sir."

"How green?"

"To the point where I am hardly trying and I still defeat them with immense ease, sir."

He sighs deep.

"Patience. That's all we can have to get them to where they need to be."

I groan inwardly, but not out loud so he could hear. Patience is a virtue. And I'm not the most virtuous creature in Narnia.

"Yes, sir. I shall do my best."

"Good. Now go eat. You will need the strength to handle your men." He grins at me as he walks away. He has a terrible sense of humor. Sad thing is, I like it.

Rhoslyn's POV

I sat under a big oak tree, lazily writing my name in the dirt with a twig. The other nymphs are speaking excitedly about their much-anticipated time off and what they are going to be doing…blah, blah, blah.

"Hey," is say, looking up, "do any of you know anything about the water nymphs?"

One particularly chatty nymph squealed. "Of course!"

"Um, are they friendly?" All the other nymphs began giggling. I could feel my face turning the color of my hair.

"They are very friendly! Especially the males." A blonde nymph, Caltha, says suggestively. Now I could feel my face burning.

"Don't get so embarrassed. Oh Rhoslyn! Are you going to see the water nymphs?"

"N-no, I was just curious!" I try to hide my face behind my hair.

"Well, if you do decide to visit them, watch out for Nen."

"Who's Nen?" The nymphs start giggling even more.

"Only the best looking water nymph!" She scoffs like I should know.

"Oh alright…" The others start gossiping about Nen and his "good looks" I roll my eyes and continue my sketching. Picking up bits and pieces of their conversation.

"He did what?"

"Oh poor girl, I don't believe it."

"It's true!"

I smile. Gossip can really get the best of us sometimes.

"Girls?" An all too familiar voice rings out. It was Delphina.

"Yes?" We all muse, eerily at the same time.

"Good news! Since the early arrival of winter, we are allowed to leave early for holiday!" There was a collective shout of joy from all the nymphs. All the girls left the gardens rather quickly, leaving Delphina and me alone.

"Rhoslyn, go enjoy your time off!" She brings me to my feet and nearly shoves me out of the gardens.

"Great." I mumble.

Time to make some friends.


	2. Anger and New Beginnings

HighlanderQueen (ChelseyPudge) (Hafwen):  
Hey everyone! What's up? Where's the love? We got little to no reviews! We were on the brink of tears, my friends. We can't put more up unless we get reviews. Thank Heavens for the few that did review. They were lovely. They made us want to do more.  
Anyway, we have had a blast with this story. Can't wait to see where it goes!

Imadaywalker (Mrs. Peacock) (Rhoslyn):  
Hey! Thanks for those that have reviewed, you brighten our days! Please review if you haven't 'cause it's what keeps us going! We really want to write more and can't wait to show you guys what we have up our sleeves!

Chapter 2

* * *

Hafwen's POV

"Alright Ladies! Lunchtime and Playtime is over! Form up!" I shout as I returned from lunch. The ladies scramble to form a line and to look like soldiers. I groan at their appearance. We have a long way to go.

"I have news, Ladies. General Oreius is going to join us this afternoon. He has decided that it is time that you learn what's what."

I hear a groan.

"Do you have something to say, Talli?" I glare at the young centaur that I fought with earlier on the subject of the necessity of fighting skills.

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"For now. But I will decide if it is necessary later."  
"I still do not see the purpose of fighting." she said, snidely.

I stride up to her and glare at her.

"Very well, Talli. You will learn the purpose of fighting by being the first volunteer."

As I finish giving off instructions on how they are to respect the General, he strides up.

"Good afternoon, Lieutenant. Good afternoon Ladies."

"Good afternoon, General" the girls chorus. I could swear they were swooning.

"Greetings, General. I don't know how to thank you for giving up your precious time to be here today."  
He nods and gives me a discreet grin as he passes by me to get a look at my recruits. His brow furrows and he glares at some of the girls.

"How long have they been soldiers?"

"One month and a week, General."

He grunts and continues to pace in front of them. After a couple minutes of this he turns to me.

"I think it would be best if we started now. I don't want to be here all night. However, by the looks of it, I will be here that long."

I nod and order Talli to grab her striking stick. She replies by rolling her eyes. This, in turn, earns her a smack in the head with a stick by the General.

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

I skip down to the sea feeling the grainy sand beneath my feet. No one is here. I plop down where I was standing and call out to the sea.

"Hello?"

No answer.

"Hello? Is anyone there?" I inch closer to the cold water and splash my toes in it. After a couple minutes of sitting in silence I screech. In an instant I see three heads poking out from the water staring at me.

"Were you calling us?" The head on the left asked me.

"Well, I was screaming." I murmur.

"That scream was you calling us."

"Sorry." I picked myself up and turn to leave when I felt something tugging at my arm.

"Where are you going?" A tall water nymph with silvery hair and pale blue skin asks me.

"Back up to my tree…" He looked back at his two friends that were still in the water and then glances back at me. He raises one of his eyebrows and smiles mischievously.

"Your tree?" I try to take my arm back but his grip was strong.

"Y-yes, my tree." I say forcefully.

"A dryad, are we?"

"No, I'm a garden nymph!" I regain my arm and march back up the beach, my face bright red.

"Don't leave so soon!" I stop in my tracks and sigh. Hafwen would kill me if I didn't at least give this whole "friend" thing a shot.

"Fine."

* * *

Hafwen's POV

I smile as I watch the girls trudge home. They did well today. They are slowly getting better. And it only took until 10 pm for General Oreius to be pleased enough to send them home.

"Excuse me, sir?"

I turn to see the young centauress that I tried to train earlier.

"Yes, Eavan?"

"I'm sorry that I failed before. I did try to stay on my feet."

I give her a sympathetic smile. "I know. And I was a little too harsh. However, I can't always be nice. After all, you will never meet a nice Minotaur."

She grins at me. I also feel General Oreius' gaze.

"You will get better. Just keep working at it."

"Will I be as good as you?"

I think about it, and look at her seriously.

"I have trained my whole life. Since I was old enough to hold a bow. I did not have the opportunity you have. If you work hard, and if you never give up, you should be able to fight anyone, or anything."

She beams at me, "Oh, I will work hard sir! I promise you!"

I pat her shoulder and send her home.

"Very well handled, Lieutenant. Even I would consider you a role model."

I bow my head to hide my blushing face.

"Thank you, General."

"I also found you did well in our demonstration today." He stated, with a cheeky grin.

I cringe as I remember the event.

"Alright Ladies," General Oreius announced, " Lieutenant Hafwen and I shall demonstrate a move that will be immensely useful to you."

He turned to me and grinned almost maniacally.

"Are you ready for this, Lieutenant?"

"The question is, dear General, are you ready?"

We began. I wish I could describe what it was like. Picture masculine power against graceful power.

We twisted and contorted. Dove and ducked. Leapt and weaved. This lasted for what seemed hours. And we were armed only with sticks and our hands.

I had my arm wrapped around his neck and he was tugging at it, "Well, Oreius, do you give?"

He chuckles and grunts "No," and I ended up on the ground, my arms pinned above my head and his face not far from mine.

"What makes you think I would give up?" he whispers.

I snickered and grabbed his entire chin, hair and all, in my teeth and pulled. This, in turn, loosened his grip on my arms and I flipped him onto the ground and pinned him with my body. I put my elbows on his chest and rested my chin on my fists.

"I just thought you would have found that easier."

I stood up and hauled him up, to the best of my ability anyway. We were both panting and grinning at each other. Our moment was broken by applause.

I forgot that the recruits were there.

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

"So, what's your name?" The nymph asks snaking an arm around my

shoulders, but I shrug it off.

"Rhoslyn. What's _your_ name?" I question. He fakes and expression

of hurt and looks me directly in the eyes.

"You don't know who I am?"

"No, I'm sorry but I can't say that I do."

"Well, I'm Nen." He says simply. 'Oh no, _the_ Nen?' I think

panicking.

"Oh, very nice to meet you Nen." I blush. He takes notice of this

and smirks.

"So you do know who I am…"

"The other girls had mentioned you before." This seemed to peak his

interest.

"Really?"

"Yes. But it wasn't that big of a deal."

"What did they say?" He asks me, his smirk growing even bigger.

"To stay away from you." Immediately his smile drops and he looks

almost crestfallen. I regret telling him this and sigh, "But I never

listen to what they say. I like to see things for myself." I put my

hand on his shoulder and smile. He turns to face me. His smile

reappearing fast, Nen grabs me by the wrist and drags me into the

water with him.

"What are you doing?" I shriek.

"Calm down Rhoslyn, I want to show you something."

"But you don't understand! I can't swim!" I try to reason with Nen

but he isn't listening.

"Just hold onto me." He says reassuringly. I look over to where his

friends were watching and noticed that they were gone.

I wonder where they went?' I thought. I start shaking as the water reaches my

torso.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine." Nen smiles, his blue eyes

glittering. He places both his hands on either side of my neck and I

feel something tickling underneath his fingers, something was growing.

"W-WHAT ARE YOU—"

"I told you that you would be fine. Try to relax."

"Well, Nen it's hard to relax when things are growing out of your

NECK!" I scream. He laughs at me and slowly removes his hands.

"It's alright. I'm surprised your garden friends hadn't told you about

this." He says.

"What's _this_?"

"_This_…well _these_, actually, are gills."

"Gills?" I repeat in amazement. I find my hands traveling up towards

my neck. He wasn't lying. Little flaps of skin were really

protruding from the sides of my neck. "Gills for what?" I question

suspiciously. He throws his head back in laughter.

"Rhoslyn, you must spend too much time in your _tree_. Gills are for

breathing underwater!"

"I know that, but we aren't going underwater…" I laugh nervously. He

just stares at me, looking very serious.

"Yes, we are." Before I could protest this, he grabs me by the waist

and dives deep into the water. I keep my eyes shut and grab a hold of

him even tighter, cursing myself for never learning to swim.

'This Nen character is pretty sneaky.' I think as we cut through the deep

ocean.

I finally feel brave enough to open my eyes and notice that

the ocean walls are getting smaller and I realize that we are in a

canal. I steal a glance at Nen and see his eyes fixed on a

destination I can't make out. Finally, he looks down at me and

motions towards what appears to be a stonewall. Nen starts to speak

but a very high and very loud shriek that I cannot understand comes

out. I try to act out that I can't understand him. He laughs and in

one swift movement propels me out of the water and on top of the

stonewall; after a few seconds Nen joins me.

"Well, what did you think?"

"I'm a little wet…" I laugh.

"Hmm, I think it's quite suiting." He grins.

"Where are we?" I ask ignoring his comment.

"We are in a cave." I just stare at him and he sighs. "We are in

_the_ cave. Many of the water nymphs, like myself, reside here." He

pulls me up to join him where he's standing and we continue deeper in.

"So…do you bring all of the girls you meet here?" I ask

conversationally.

"No…just the ones I like..." Nen reply's cheekily. He winks at me and

I feel my face heat up.

"Wow, it's so beautiful here!" I say changing the subject.

"It is." He scopes out the enormous cave. "Something must be going

on." Nen murmurs absentmindedly.

"Why is that?"

"We have the cave to ourselves."

"Oh, ok…"

"Here, let me show you something!" He grabs me by the hand and pulls

me through twisting paths and over makeshift bridges. Suddenly, he

stops short, causing me to crash into him. After I steady myself, I

look up at what he is pointing to. I'm awestruck. "Great isn't it?"

Nen whispers.

"Yes, it is! Nen, thank you for bringing me here." I say joyously.

He tears his eyes away from the spectacle and looks down at me.

"Well, your welcome." We sat there for a while in silence. Just

staring up at the wondrous sight before us. Hours must have passed

before either one of us spoke. "Rhoslyn?"

"Hmm?"

"I think it's time I take you home…" I reluctantly get up and follow

him.

"Wait, didn't we come in that way?"

"I'm taking you a different way out, so you can always come back and

visit…that is if you _want_ to." Nen smiles sheepishly.

"I'm sure I will." I take his hand, surprising him, and he leads me

out of the cave.

"Why didn't you take me this way before, there was no need for the

gills…" I remember them and touch my neck. No gills.

"I thought it would be more fun the other way. Oh, and the gills

disappear after an hour or so."

I giggle, "Well, it was more fun the other way…thanks again. It was very nice

meeting you."

"The pleasure is all mine, Rhoslyn." I couldn't help but blush, yet

again, when he lightly kisses my hand.

"I'll see you soon, hopefully."

"I will make sure of it." I grin and take off into the forest. 'I

made an actual friend! I have to tell Hafwen.' I think as I bolt to

my favorite centaurs house.

* * *

Hafwen's POV

I loudly curse myself as I walk home. 'WHY! Why did I feel comfortable enough to refer to him as just "Oreius!"'

I slam my front door open and shut, breaking it. Oh well. I will fix it later. I am still angry, but Rhoslyn's coming over for dinner. Not even rage with curb my appetite. Nor hers, for that matter.

As I'm chopping furiously at the vegetables, Rhoslyn shows up.

"Hafie? What happened? The door is split in two."

I just grumble. She looks around the room and sees my destruction, and how I'm handling my knife.

"Um, Hafie? Are you…ok?"

"NO! I'm NOT ok! I was out of line today! GAH!" I scream as I chuck the knife at the wall.

"Wow! You were disciplined for the first time in years then, hmm?"

"No, I wasn't _disciplined_."

"Then…what happened?"

"I…referred to the General by his first name."

She laughs loudly, causing me to jump.

"Is that all? Seriously, Hafie. I see nothing wrong with it!"

"You don't understand, Rhos! You can't refer to them by their first name! It implies you are too comfortable around them!"

"So, you like him?"

I glare at her and pull the knife out of the wall. "Can we talk about something other than my stupidity, please?"

"Sure."

"Good."

Rhoslyn plops herself in the chair and grins at me.

"What? What did you do?"

"Guess what I did today, Hafie!"

"What did you do today?"

"I made a friend!"

I drop my knife in shock.

"You…did what?" I stutter, eyes wide.

"I made a friend. What? It's not that big of a deal."

"Rhos! That is a big deal! Oh, I'm so proud of you!" I gather her up in my arms and hug her.

"Um, Hafie…" Rhos chokes out.

"Yes?"

"I can't breathe…"

"Oh. Sorry." I drop her back in her chair and quietly go back to fixing dinner.

"Are you going to ask me about my new friend?"

"Ok, what is she like?"

"Who said it was a she?"

My eyes grow wide again, "Don't tell me it was a 'he!'"

She gives me the biggest, cheekiest grin the world has ever known.

"By the Mane, Rhos! You are made leaps and bounds today!"

She hides her face as she blushes, "I suppose so."

"Tell me about him! What was he like?"

"I won't tell unless you explain this whole 'Oreius' business."

I groan and inhale deeply, "Fine. He decided to help me with my recruits today."

"Ok, keep going." She said as she brought her knees up to her chin and wrapped her arms around her legs.

"Well, he also decided that in order to show them hand to hand combat training is necessary he and I would do a mock fight."

"Alright."  
"Well, halfway through it, I became to caught up in it and too comfortable. I called him 'Oreius.'"

She just sits there, taking it all in. Then she spoke, "Did he seem to notice?"  
"No. Well, he didn't say anything…"

"Then why are you worrying about it? He probably didn't notice or he didn't care. You two did grow up together, after all."

I nod, not looking at her. She continues.

"And furthermore, you shouldn't overreact about things you aren't sure of! If he didn't make a big to do about it, then neither should you!"

I give a sheepish grin, "I did overreact a little, didn't I?"

She glances at the front door and then the hole in the wall, "Um, yes…just a little."

"Now, I've told you about the 'Oreius' situation. Tell me about your new friend."

"Well, his name is Nen…"  
"Wait! THE Nen? You are friends with Nen of all people?"

"How is it that everyone knows who he is and I didn't?"

"You don't go out enough. And you didn't ask."

She growls and gives a little pout.

"Ok," I giggle, "keep telling me about Nen."

"Why? You know who he is!"

"I've never met him. I've only heard stories."  
"Ok. Well, He has silver hair. Blue skin…"

"Is he handsome?"

"Well…"  
"Rhos! You think he's handsome!"

"It's hard not to!"  
"Do you like him?"

"NO! Only as a friend."

I grin at her and stir the soup.

"Do you like Oreius?"


	3. Frustration and Confusion

HighlanderQueen (ChelseyPudge):

Hey guys! How are you all? We are having a blast with this story. We are loving your reviews! Here's another chapter! Hope you like it!

Imadaywalker (Mrs. Peacock):

Yay! We have been working very hard on this and we hope that you guys are all liking it so far! So, enough rambling! On with the show!

* * *

DISCLAIMER: We don't own anything….OK, we own Hafwen and Rhoslyn. And any characters that C.S. Lewis did not come up with…

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

Hafwen keeps stirring the stew, trying to avoid my gaze.

"Well…?" I ask eagerly awaiting her reply. I hear her start to clear her throat.

"No."

"You lie!" I accuse her.

"No, I'm not." She says with an even tone.

"Yes you are! You did that thing you do when you lie!"

"What thing?" I giggle at her feeble attempts she's making of hiding her red face.

"Your throat-clearing thing! Plus, you're blushing like a little girl!" I squeal giddily prancing around the room.

"Soups up!" Hafwen announces trying to change the subject. She spoons the soup into two bowls and places them on the wooden table.

"Stop bouncing around and eat. Wouldn't want you fatigued for your Nen." I stop spinning and give her my worst look.

"He's not my Nen…" I murmur. "Wow, this soup looks terrific." I smile.

"Why thank you Rhos!" She grins triumphantly at my blushing face but lets it go. We eat our soup in silence. I glance up at her and notice that she's muttering under her breath.

"Why did I have to call him by his first name? Good move Hafwen!" I give her a kick under the table. She looks up sharply.

"Sorry, leg cramp…honestly Hafie, you need to stop worrying, you're bringing down the room. Let's discuss something else!" I grab both our empty bowls and begin to wash them in the sink.

"What do you want to discuss?" She raises an eyebrow, Oreius obviously still on her mind.

"What do you want to discuss?"

"You never did tell me what you and Nen were up today!" I drop the bowls in the soapy water causing it to splash all over my face.

Hafwen let out a very loud laugh. "I didn't know males could have that sort of effect on you Rhos!"

"What effect? The dishes slipped!" I say, blushing.

"Well, you're normally very graceful, being a Nymph and all…so are you going to tell me about what you two did or what?"

* * *

Hafwen's POV

She glances at me and sighs.

"Do I really have to?"

"Yes."

"Fine."

She is rather reluctant to tell me what happened, until she gets to the part where Nen gave her gills.

"Oh, Hafie! It was the strangest feeling in the world!"

"What was it like? How did he give you gills?"

"Well, he put his hands on the sides of my neck. It was rather like that feeling you get when bugs crawl up your arm."

"Strange!"

"I know! And then we went underwater…"

Rhoslyn chattered for almost 2 hours about her experience. I was glad to see her going out to meet new people. Being cooped up in that tree of hers does her no good.

"By the Mane, Hafie! It's very late!" She pipes as she stifles a yawn.

"Well," I yawn as well, "it's time for bed. Do you want to stay the night? It's a long way to your tree."

"Sure!"

"I have a tree outside my room, it's the right size. Do you want to sleep there tonight? Or would you rather sleep in den? I have had a nice comfortable chair made for company."

"I prefer trees. Chairs are for sitting in. Not sleeping in!"

"True…"

"Goodnight Hafie!"

I wander into my room and pull my tunic off and let my hair down. Now that I was alone, thoughts of General Oreius came flooding back. I curse myself once more and lay down on my huge bed. Sleep would not come easy tonight. It didn't help that Rhoslyn was singing to herself outside my window.

"Can't sleep?"

I shriek. The creature has stuck her head in my window, and she was hanging upside-down.

"Well, I don't have any hope of sleeping now!" I groan and put on a robe.

"Why can't you sleep? Think of something? Or…someone?"

I glare at her, "If you don't leave me alone, I'm sending you home."

She just giggles at me and pulls her head out of the window. I can faintly hear her say something along the lines of, "Gee, is someone in love?"

I yell, "I don't know, are you!"

And with that, I flop back on my bed and bury my face in my pillow.

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

It's before dawn and I hadn't gotten a wink of sleep last night. I look into Hafwen's window and see that she has finally stopped tossing around and has fallen into a much-needed rest. So as not to wake her, I gingerly hop down from the tree she let me borrow and start walking in no particular direction. The stars were still shimmering brightly and it was freezing.

"Typical winter weather." I sigh.

"Well, what do you expect Flower-Girl?"

"AHHH!" I screech into the darkness. "Who's there?" The figure that stood before me smirking was none other than Nen himself.

"Who do you think?"

"I don't know, you just caught me off guard." Thank goodness for the darkness or otherwise he would have seen my burning face. "Why did you refer to me as Flower-Girl?" I question. Nen shrugs his shoulders, his smile widening. He winks at me. Why did he wink at me? What's with all of this winking business? "Why?" I say when he doesn't respond. "I'm not a flower!"

"You look like one…" He says eyeing my green dress and red hair. "Just like a rose." He adds cheekily.

"Aren't you the bold one?" I state.

"Me? I'm not the one pacing around outside a rather suave looking sea-nymph's sleeping quarters." I look around, finally noticing my surroundings. He's right. I am outside the cave he brought me to yesterday. How did I get here?

"Oh, sorry. I was just walking around, couldn't sleep. Bye!" I could feel my face growing brighter by the second; soon it would surpass that of the stars.

"Don't go Flower-Girl!" I could hear Nen pleading behind me. "Just stay, we can spend the rest of the night and the day together, I would like that a lot…" I couldn't help but grin at his begging.

"I don't know, wouldn't you want to get back to sleep?" I ask trying to refrain a giggle.

"Oh come on, I'm up now! Plus, I know you want to spend your day with me, Flower-Girl." As much as I don't want to admit it, he got me there.

* * *

Hafwen's POV

The sun once again blared in my face and I let out a groan. 'Not another day.' I didn't bother pulling a robe on. I left it on last night. I poked my head out my window to see if Rhoslyn would pop up out of nowhere. Satisfied with my findings, or lack of, I went into the kitchen to pour some juice. As I was downing it, I heard a knock on my door…well, what was left of it.

"Come on in. As you can see, the door is open," I shout.

"Are you sure that is alright, Lieutenant? I would hate to intrude."

I gasp and drop my empty bowl.

"Well…sir…I don't…mind," I stutter, "Please, come in! Ignore the mess, I haven't had time to clean."

He picks up the pieces of the door and sets them to the side. I rush to fix him a bowl of something to drink.

"I hope you don't mind my barging in."

"Oh, I don't mind at all, sir! What brings you here?" I ask as I hand him the bowl.

"I would like to apologize."

Of all the things I thought he would say, this was not one of them.

"Sorry? Sorry for what, sir?"

"I feel I was too forward yesterday."

"You, sir? Oh, no. You were not forward at all!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course, sir!"

He lets out a satisfied grunt and drinks the juice I gave him.

"Sir?"

"Hmm?"

"I would like to apologize too."

"What for, Lieutenant?"

"I…referred to you by your first name." I sigh and bow my head.

He looks at me and gives a grin, "You did? When?"

"When we were mock fighting…don't…don't you remember?"

He cocks his head and scrunches his face. He then turns to me, "Vaguely…but it didn't bother me. You can call me Oreius, when we are not around the recruits."

I grin at him, "Well, in that case, _Oreius_, you may call me Hafwen. When we aren't around the recruits."

"Alright, _Hafwen_."

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

"So what would you like to do Flower-Girl? We've got all day." Nen drapes his arm around my shoulders and laughs.

"Well I, Rhoslyn, don't know. What would you like to do?"

"I can think of many things I would like to do…" There is a hint of suggestion in his voice and I immediately shrug his arm off of me. I knew he took this as a sign of dislike since the smile on his disappeared. 'Oh no, he thinks I don't like him!' In an act of desperation I take hold of his hand and smile shyly. "I think I have an idea of what we can do." I squeeze his hand and meet his gaze.

He smiles bashfully and entwines his fingers in mine. "What do you have in mind?" He asks in his cheeky manner as he inches closer towards my face.

"Follow me!" I whisper in his ear.

He glances down at our tightly clasped hands. "Like I have a choice." Before he was done speaking, I dragged him along through the forest at a breakneck speed. "Where are you taking me?"

"Well, since I got to see your home last night, I'll thought I would show you mine!"

I turn to see a nauseating green tint cover his usually pale blue face and sigh. "Maybe we should go a little slower."

* * *

Hafwen's POV

Oreius waited for me to change and he walked with me to the training grounds.

"Do you remember growing up with me?"

I smile fondly at the memories we shared, "Yes, Oreius, I do."

"Remember beating up my cousin?"

I really start to laugh at this, "Oh, I remember. The creature was so annoying."

"You don't have to tell me! I'm related to him."

"Do you remember the early days of training? My dad refused to let the trainer move me to the female division?"

His body resonates with a chuckle, "Oh, I remember. They made you fight with me to prove you were just as good as any male."

"You never could beat me."

He chuckles again.

Silence.

"Oreius?"

"Hmm?"

"Why did we never address each other by our names?"

"I never thought about it. I suppose it was drilled into us. I remember having to call you Sprats."

"And I had to call you Dodge."

We kept chatting until we arrived at the grounds. He suddenly stood taller and became the General we all know.

"Well, Lieutenant, it was a pleasure. Inform me if you require assistance with your recruits."

"Thank you, sir. Have a pleasant day."

And with that, we parted.

* * *

Rhoslyn's POV

After what felt like years of urging him along, I guess swimming was his main way of transportation; we finally made it to the tiny clearing in the forests where my tree lay. It felt good to be home, to see the serene faces of my flower friends. The sun started to shine and it reflected brilliantly off the brook near the trunk. "I would like to welcome you to my home!" I let go of his hand and danced amongst the sleeping flowers. Nen just looked on smiling. "What's so funny?" I give him an incredulous look.

"You. You're a very unpredictable creature. One minute you're shy and the next you're dancing around. I can't quite figure you out."

"Nymphs are unpredictable creatures! Aren't you?" I ask giving him a wink. I could tell this took him aback.

"Yes."

"No, I don't think so, Nen." I shook my head. "No, not at all." Nen's head drooped in defeat. Feeling responsible I stopped my dancing and walked to where he was standing. "Fine, you're not predictable."

"I know!" In one fluid motion he scoops me into his arms and spins me around.

"Very unpredictable Nen." I say sarcastically.

"I'm not done yet."

"Well now it's not going to be unpredictable since you just tol—" I couldn't finish my sentence cause at that moment I found his lips covering mine. But as soon as they were there, they were gone.

"How was that for unpredictable?" He laughs.

"I, well…um, I…okay?" I stammer. 'He just kissed me. But I'm sure he does that to all the girls.' I think bitterly. I turn away from his gaze. "Did you hear that?"

"Um, hear what?" He asks.

"I think I just heard Hafie!" I spring up into action and run through the woods, all the while trying to keep the tears from falling down my face.

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REVIEW TIME! 


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